Nelson Lamar Dawson

A beloved father, grandfather, uncle, and friend, Nelson Lamar Dawson, a former resident of Liberty, Mississippi, passed away Wednesday, January 29, 2020, at Landon Ridge Assisted Living, Sugar Land, Texas. Visitation at Brown Funeral Home, 901 S. Captain Gloster Drive, Gloster, Mississippi, Friday, February 14, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visitation resumes at the funeral home Saturday, February 15, from 10 a.m. until service at 11 a.m., officiated by the Rev. Jan Curwick and Dr. David Womack. Burial in New Hope Methodist Protestant Church Cemetery, Gloster, Mississippi. Nelson was 86, born February 16, 1933, the youngest of 13 children, in Gloster, and graduated from Oxford High School in 1951, and from Southwest Junior College (Summit). He then served four years in the U.S. Air Force. Nelson married Elaine Merle Womack on July 23, 1960, in Baton Rouge where they resided and had two children, Dana Rebecca Dawson and Lane Lamar Dawson. Nelson was a member of Foster Road Baptist Church for over 20 years. Upon retirement from the Baton Rouge Fire Department as Fire Prevention Chief in 1988, Nelson and Elaine moved to Liberty, Mississippi, where Nelson was an arson investigator and Elections Commissioner in Amite County for many years. Nelson, an avid genealogist, scoured courthouses and cemeteries, collecting over 100,000 family names and writing three genealogy books. Nelson was a member of Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church at Busy Corner for over 20 years. Nelson's home and acreage on Pecan Road were featured in the Enterprise Journal for its many beautiful flowers. In 2018, he moved to Sugar Land, Texas, to be near his children. He is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, Dana and Bo Capdau; son and daughter-in-law, Lane and Katherine Dawson; grandchildren, Michelle Capdau, Conner Capdau and fiancée Amy Gastauer, Felicia Capdau, Andrew Dawson, Madeleine Dawson, and Rebecca Dawson; brother-in-law, David Womack and wife, Janet; and very special friend, Janelle Jackson. He is preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Elaine; parents, Luther Cleveland Dawson and Allie Bateman Dawson; sisters, Annie Belle Crum, Lula Dawson, Elsie Dawson, Maxine VonDrasek, Florence Byrd, Tressie McKey; and brothers, Thomas Dawson, Roddis Dawson, Carlos Dawson, Lamottis Dawson, Loyd Dawson, and Willis Dawson. Pallbearers will be Conner Capdau, Andrew Dawson, Paul Dawson, Eric Dawson, Ned Brown, and Steven Davis. Honor Guard will be provided by Baton Rouge Fire Department and Chief Ed Smith. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to New Hope Methodist Protestant Church Cemetery, 5721 New Hope Road, Gloster, MS 39638, for cemetery maintenance.